Kula Lodge

Good
Traveller Type: family with young children
  : location to Haleakala and view from the room
  : bathroom had mold

Fair
Traveller Type: family with young children
  : The property has very beautiful restaurant and marketplace store. However, my daughter’s bed on the loft area has lots of ants. And hair dryer is missing at first night. I asked check-in office the next day for a hair dryer. Check in office close at 2:30pm.
  : I like the rustic look of this property. However, the ants on bed made my daughter not so happy.

Poor
Traveller Type: young couple
  : The location is perfect if you’re looking to go up Haleakala. Lunch was decent.
  : The value for money is actually ridicolous, in a bad way… If it was 1/3 of the price it would be just ok. super old room and furniture, not even a fridge or aircon, poor bathroom, and staff was nowhere to be seen when we actually needed something (I do understand issues with staffing these days tho, so that’s ok). The selling point of this place seems to be the cool outdoor area and it was not even open for use when we were there.. If they lowered price or updated rooms I would recommend, but unfortunately not as it is…

Poor
Traveller Type: review category business travellers
  : The lodge itself is a place to stay, in one of the cabins on property, adjacent to the restaurant. Be aware before doing so that the road it sits alongside is a noisy one, 24 hours a day; we were awakened by loud vehicles several times during the night, and the early morning activity that accompanies a restaurant opening at 7AM, which is supported by a steady revenue stream of tour buses coming off the sunrise view atop Haleakala. We had to sleep with a lamp on (no night light provided) in consideration of our two kids sleeping in the loft, in the event one of them needed to descend the steep, multi rung ladder to the bathroom during the night. This is a very significant safety concern. Oddly the bed had no flat sheet whatsoever, only a fitted one. The loft mattresses were twins placed directly upon the loft floor. Other unexpected issues for a $500/night property included a very dirty ice bucket. The gardens behind the restaurant are beautiful, as are the views, of course, all backed by the continuous soft accompaniment of yacht rock, which pairs nicely with the 70s flair of the entire property. We were warned off the restaurant food by a family member who lives nearby, as he said it was very inconsistent. The bathrooms are closer to circa 1950s or 1960s. I really enjoy places that are caught in a time warp, when they are clean, decently appointed, and well maintained. Kula Lodge is none of these, and would not recommend based upon our experience.

Wonderful
Traveller Type: family with young children
  : The view ! And the outdoor dining by the gardens.
  : It would have been helpful to have a small refrigerator in the room so we wouldn't have to eat every meal out.

Very Good
Traveller Type: young couple

Fair
Traveller Type: young couple
  : The former restaurant, with its outdoor tables terraced over some landscaping, is lovely and seriously under-used. The restaurant is open for a mediocre/over-priced breakfast only and seems to be open for lunch (which didn’t fit our plans). If you can stand the bus loads of Haleakala sunrise tourists at breakfast, and if the hostess will let you sit outside, you’ll have a lovely morning meal. The staff is friendly and does its best to manage around difficult circumstances.
  : The room was dingy, lacking outlets for charging anything, with seriously antiquated bathroom, nothing other than a coffee maker (not even a mini-fridge), an uncomfortable loft bed (our son had to find alternate accommodations). The room’s balcony had no view other than the back parking lot and an inconveniently planted tree. The walk we might have liked through the garden was chained off with a “no trespassing” sign. The road noise at 3:30 am each day as buses and cars dash to the Haleakala summit for sunrise woke us up. When we decided to splurge on a breakfast (not included in the room), the host only seated us indoors where the Muzak was offensive and the crowds were intrusive. The prices are moderate for Maui but crazy by mainland standards. Don’t let website photos fool you — it isn’t actually charming.

Very Good
Traveller Type: family with young children

Very Poor
Traveller Type: solo traveller

Very Good
Traveller Type: young couple